To Bangkok and Beyond

I'm off tonight for Bangkok and Bali. I'll be gone three weeks and five days. Not much for my European travel companions who take off a month every year, but my American friends are astonished. I've spent the whole day packing. I was only going to bring carry on luggage, but my German friend, Peter, said "Loraine, the only time you will touch your luggage is when you take it to the airport in Los Angeles." I'm not taking my computer, but I'll try to blog from time to time and send photos of some of the most beautiful islands in the world. My husband, Carl Eastlake, is staying behind because he's running for the board of the Writers Guild of America. Now that's dedication.

Politicians Who Cheat

Those Senators and Governors who loudly profess their devotion to religion and cheat on their wives are only honoring the Old Testament which clearly states that marriage is the union of one man and his wives and handmaidens.

Soccer Mom Says...: I Think I Finally Found It

Soccer Mom Says...: I Think I Finally Found It

Book Club Blog Discusses BAD BELLE

Want to give a shout out to the Book Club Blog http://bookclub2002.blogspot.com/2009/05/kkk.html#comments

They read The Bad Behavior of Belle Cantrell last month. I want you to know I did a ton of research so if you have any questions, just let me know.

Age is a Peculiar Number

The trouble with admitting your true age is other people always have stereotypes about what the number means. I confess. I did and I was wrong. When I wrote THE SCANDALOUS SUMMER OF SISSY LEBLANC I created Belle Cantrell, the septuagenarian suffragist, and gave her a cane! Seventy seemed very old to me--then. After that, my father-in-law at age 70 began riding in bicycle marathons and did fifty mile practice runs up and down mountains. I've never been that young. Have you? Now I follow Oscar Wilde's advice when he said, "Never trust a woman who tells you her true age. If she tells that, she'll tell anything."

Anxiously Awaiting Another Novel

Many of you have been kind enough to send me emails. When I recieved this, I wanted to share it. Thanks for the encouragement, Cyndi. A writer who goes into a little room by herself everyday needs all the encouragement she can get.

Dear Loraine, I first read, "The Scandalous Summer of Sissy LeBlanc" about 4 years ago. A bunch of girls at work were passing your book around. It was one of the best stories I'd read in years. It wasn't until recently that I discovered "the Bad Behavior of Belle Cantrell". Every bit as wonderful as the first. Your characters are written wonderfully. Great spirit and humour and very real, like they could be my neighbors. (I think some of them are.) Thank you for writing these stories. I do hope you'll have more to come. I have purchased both books and have passed them around to my customers and friends. They all come back with the same reaction, "WOW! What great characters! Does she have any other books?". Anxiously Awaiting Another Novel,Cyndi Jones

"If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton. You may as well make it dance." ~ George Bernard Shaw

KayteandRob on [the next] networking site, just posted a terrific review of THE SCANDALOUS SUMMER OF SISSY LEBLANC in which she says, "I can't wait to finish and find out what happens."

I tried to post a reply and thanks but [the nest] made that almost impossible. Had to sign in and then they said my name was already used, I had to find another name, etc. Why do some sites make it so hard to post?

The Most Important Thing About Virtue

The Most Important Thing About Virtue should have been the title of the blog below.

"The most important thing about virture is to talk as if you're in favor of it."

Or at least that's what my character BELLE CANTRELL thought, when faced with the visit of some very uptight neighbors. What do you think?

The Califf Family: Celebrity Soccer Game

The Califf Family: Celebrity Soccer Game

Congratulations on your beautiful family. I especially love the pictures of Jude's baptism. And thanks so much for recommending my first novel, THE SCANDALOUS SUMMER OF SISSY LEBLANC. It took me three years to write and so your recommendation means a lot to me.

Help for Aging in the New Year

2009. I've come up with new Southern Belle advice for those of you who plan to become a year older:

A woman who always insist on telling her true age...
shows a sad lack of imagination.

Hoping 2009 is the best year yet for you-all and for me, too.

The Califf Family: I've been Tagged AGAIN

The Califf Family: I've been Tagged AGAIN

Thanks for recommending THE SCANDALOUS SUMMER OF SISSY LEBLANC. I've mentioned you on my Blog, The Southern Belle Sounds Off.

The Califf Family: I've been Tagged AGAIN

I want to give a call out to the Califf Family Blogspot for recommending my first novel, THE SCANDALOUS SUMMER OF SISSY LEBLANC and also to Faith on her blog Wennies and Me for her terrific review. http://wenniesandme.wordpress.com/ Both of you have taste and style.

Satisfying the Gods Who Live in Our Computers

Pantheists believe there are gods all around us in every tree.

They are probably wrong, but clearly there are gods living in our computers. Success does not depend on reading voluminous manuals so much as knowing how to propitiate the particular god in your machine. A successful writer must discover what sacrifice to make to keep the computer god from scrambling his or her manuscript, catching a virus, or plunging brilliant thoughts into the blue screen of death.

The Gods in Our Computers

Pantheists believed there were gods all around us in every tree.

They were probably wrong, but clearly there are gods living in every computer. Success does not depend on reading voluminous manuals so much as knowing how to propitiate the particular god living in your machine. A successful writer discovers what sacrifice to make to keep the gods from scrambling your manuscript, catching a virus, or plunging your brilliant thoughts into the blue screen of death.

MORE TIPS FROM THE SOUTHERN BELLE'S HANDBOOK

Men fantasize about being a knight and rescuing a maiden in distress. Encourage this. It’s a good thing. There’s no reason for you ever to struggle pushing a heavy bag into an overhead compartment. Ask him do something easy for you and thank him sweetly. He’ll feel great about himself– and you. Rule #48

Attracting Men is Easy

A few years ago, I wrote The Southern Belle’s Handbook, Sissy LeBlanc’s Rules to Live By. I thought it would be fun to share a few rules with you.

How to Make Conversation:

Men always find themselves the most fascinating subject of any conversation. When in doubt, let him talk about himself. He’ll think you’re a brilliant conversationalist. Rule Number 11

Laugh at his wit, and he’ll admire your sense of humor. Rule Number 13

Let him know you think he’s intelligent and he’ll be awed by your perspicacity, even if he can’t pronounce the word. Rule Number 15

Thought on Aging from the Southern Belle

A woman who always insists on telling her true age
shows a sad lack of imagination.

MOVING BLUES

We're leaving the Marina on Thursday and moving back to our renovated home in Beverly Hills. Now for most of the world, this is no cause for sorrow. My husband is anxious to get home. But I will miss our little apartment, the walks along the channel and onto the beach, the bicycle rides to the free concerts on the pier in Santa Monica, easy dinners at beach restaurants such as the Lido on Washington, and most especially the friends we've made. We're not moving to the moon. But it's a forty-five minute drive and no longer conducive to an invitation, "come on over for wine and cheese on our balcony. The moon is rippling on the water."

The writer's life

Here's a picture of the pool next to our apartment and me looking serious in "control central."